Take-up rod



R. H. LA WSON F eb. 15, 1938.

TAKE-UP ROD Filed April 28,1936

2 Sheets-Sheet 1- Z/YYENTWE- R0BEIETHLAWS'01X By M AZ'Tf) i Feb. 15, 1938.

R. H. LAWSON TAKE-UP ROD Filed April 28, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 BawmT/YZ/Imsm ATTy.

Patented Feb. 5, was

TAKE-UPnoD' J jf 1 Application-April 28, 1936, Serial No'. 76.7.77

i as 01,-,- 6 1 m'only .used ,in'ulti-feed knitting 'nrachines, which ha's'a special "feature'of being extensible so that threading on machines of large size is greatly Thiscaseinvolves take-up rodsuchasis coman th d 1" "lnthe drawings:

Fig. 1 is a" section hmng m of g'knittins machine and one of the extensibleftake-up rods in operativegposition; and 'j p y 7 p 10 Fig' z'is a similar viewb t showing'therodextended toaposition for'threa'dingQetc." J Multis-f eed knitting machines aresom'etimes provided with aseriesfo'f thesejsorjck lled take-up rods or arms,.one for each yarn, the function of therod being to" relievejtension in its p articu-, l'ar'yarn' anew avoid breakage of yarn andjire quentlstopping of the machine. It'would otherwise make the operation of the machine more certain and provide the feeding of yarn under a more even tension. These rods are normally mounted at the top of a multi-feed machine and thus are necessarily somewhat inaccessible to the operator since they are very likely to be out of his reach especially when in'their uppermost position. Such take-up rods may swing throughout a definite are for relieving tension in yarns threaded through them and further, may move throughout an additional extent to actuate electrical or other stop mechanism. Such a construction forms the subject matter of co-pending U. S. application Ser. No. 81,897.

It is the purpose of this invention to construct a take-up rod or arm which will assume normal dimensions when in its operative position and which will perform all the functions of the usual take-up rod, but when it is desired to thread a yarn through the end of any rod, will allow that rod to be extended to a position wherein it may be very easily handled and may be threaded without resort to threading hooks or without standing on a ladder, or otherwise inconveniencing the operator.

Referring to the figures of drawings, post I which would extend upwardly from the center 45 of the machine carriesa support consisting of a hub 2, spokes 3 and a rim 4 within which a plurality of take-up rods or arms have been pivoted at 5, the point of pivot is determined by a slot cut vertically within the rim 4, one slot for 5 each sweep, and a groove machined about the outer edge of the rim within which has been fitted a wire as indicated at for the sweeps to swing upon. Other convenient mechanical constructions may be resorted to for pivotally mounting these elements.

position shownin Fig. 1.

is fixed to post I.

The takeup rods "comprise a rectangular base or holder 6 from-which extends a tubular part ll A wireextensionWilts-within the tubular part I and'is bent as shown at 9 to carry a porcelain or other yarn guide I0 through which a yarn l l' is threaded, this yarn comingfrom a cone or other'supply. The extension, 8 is connected for normal unitary engagement and operation with the] tubular part 1 by means of a tension spring 12. attachedtoeach: element. The spring serves to draw the extension down into the tubular portionina telescopic fashion asshown in Fig. 1, but allows it to be withdrawn or extended thereby greatly. increasing the length of the arm at such times' as it is 'de sired to'tread it. The end of the partfihas. been rounded off. toallow it to enter the" tubularjportion with aininimum of effort. The base or holder 6 has an extension i3 projecting in the opposite direction from. the tubular part at which has been attached a spring It for the purpose of resiliently holding the rod in the This spring M has been attached to a clip l5 which is in turn hooked about the rim, of a disc IS, the hub I! of which This disc may be moved along the post for the purpose of simultaneously adjusting all the springs M. The upper end of the spindle or post I carries a'conical disc: 18 which serves as a stop for each of the take-up rods.

In operation these rods will normally maintain a position up against the stop 3 as shown in Fig. 1, except when excess tension in one of the yarns draws its rod down against the resistance of a spring. This movement of the rod will compensate for all jerks and uneven tendencies in the yarn as it is drawn from a supply by knitting needles or by other devices such as positive feeding wheels or the like.

When it is desired to thread the yarn through the eyelet 10 for any purpose, the operator may reach up with a hooked instrument of some suitable nature and will swing the take-up rod aboutthe pivot 5 until it is in approximately the posi-' tion shown in Fig. 2. In this position he will draw the extension 8 from the tubular part 1 extending the spring as much as is necessary until the eyelet is in an accessible position. The tension in spring l2 will be sufficient to prevent return of the tubular part of the device since the extension l3 will, be moved to a position wherein spring l4 although extended, will have very little effect to return the part of the takeup assembly to upright position. This will be evident from an inspection of Fig. 2 wherein the point of connection for the spring to the extension 13 is almost directly above the pivot 5. After threading the take-up rod, the extension 8 will be allowed to telescope within part 1 being drawn and guided therewithin by spring l2, whereupon the rod may be swung back to a position such as it normally occupies. It will be necessary to draw off a little slack yarn and to flip the rod upwardly until the full force of spring l4 may be advantageously exerted.

In its broadest aspect this invention involves a take-up rod of the general description of that illustrated and means whereby the rod or a portion of the rod can be swung down and ex-.

tended to an accessible position for threading. One particular construction has been illustrated and that is to be interpreted as illustrative of the invention and not as limiting the same. The invention is defined in the appended claims.

I claim: r y

1. A take-up rod for machines of the type described comprising a yarn tensioning arm resiliently urged in one direction and means attached to said arm for allowing the same to be displaced along its length and to elongate the said rod so that it will assume an accessible position for the purpose of threading.

2. A take-up rod for machines of the type described having a pivot, an arm. through the endof which a yarn is to be threaded and means for resiliently urging said arm in one direction, said arm being extensible axially to substantially increase the length of the same for facilitating threading.

3. A take-up rod for machines of the type described having a pivot, an arm through the end of'which a yarn is to be threaded and means for resiliently urging said arm in one direction, said arm comprising a tubular part and an extension fitting within said tubular part but movable lengthwise thereof for the purpose described.

4. A take-up rod for machines of the type described having a pivot, an arm extending in one direction from said pivot and carrying an eyelet through which a yarn is to be threaded,-a short extension in the other direction from said pivot and a spring attached thereto for urging the rod in one direction, said first mentioned arm being constructed in such a manner that it can be readily extended in an axial direction and means "for automatically returning the said arm to its original or active position.

5. A take-up rod for machines of the type described having in combination a pivot, an arm extending in one direction and carrying an eyelet through which a yarn is to be threaded and 7 means for resiliently urging said arm in one direction, said arm comprising a tubular part, an

- extension fitting within said tubular part and extending axially thereof for carrying said eyelet and a spring connected to the extension and the tubular part for drawing thetwo intotelescopic engagement.

6. A take-up arm for machines of the type described having in combination a pivot, an arm extending in one direction from the pivot, said arm beingformed in two parts one of the parts being slidable relative to the other so that one part may-be extended and means for normally maintaining the two parts in engagement and to resist extension. j r

'7. A take-up arm for machines of the type described having in combination a pivot and an extending, arm, said arm being formed in two parts and being extensible, one part being s-lidable within and axially with respect to theother.

ROBERT H. LAWSON. 

